This year, to celebrate my sibling becoming a college student, our parents bought them a laptop.
At the beginning of this year, we went to Samsung Digital Plaza to explore various options. After much deliberation, my sibling chose the Galaxy Book Flex.
Around the time we bought this product, the COVID-19 pandemic had just started. It’s still ongoing, so my sibling hasn’t even been able to set foot on their college campus with their new laptop. 😂
Personally, I hope this situation ends as soon as possible. However, whenever it seems like it might end, people tend to let their guard down, making me wonder if it ever will.
Anyway, I’ll start the review of this device with the hope that it will end eventually.
The box is different from other laptops, probably because this is a high-end model.
The edges of the box are rounded, which might be a bit troublesome when folding the box.
When I unwrapped it, it kind of looked like the laptop lid.
Wow, even the silhouette looks a bit expensive.
Oh, for those who don’t care about packaging and tend to throw everything away, be careful not to discard the pouch attached to the lid.
The finish on this laptop is definitely elegant.
At the time of purchase, this color wasn’t very common. Most Galaxy Books I saw were blue with yellow accents. When my sibling was starting college, I noticed everyone was carrying those eye-catching blue laptops. So, I asked the salesperson if there were any other colors available.
The salesperson then brought out this one from the storage, mentioning that they had limited stock and hadn’t even displayed it yet. I’m glad I asked! 😂
Although, since my sibling hasn’t attended in-person classes, it hasn’t really mattered.
Back in the day, I bought a Samsung laptop that was cheaper than this one, but it still cost around a million won. That one felt like a complete plastic piece, but this one has an aluminum forged body, giving it a distinctly premium feel.
Even the logo looks nice.
Here’s what it looks like when the laptop is opened.
Unlike modern gaming laptops that have anti-glare screens, this one has a glossy display, likely to emphasize its premium feel. Because of this, you can see a bit of my sibling’s bed and my reflection.
Currently, my sibling uses the desktop I gave them at home, and since I use this laptop intermittently, I end up using it more often. Despite the glossy screen, Samsung seems to have done something right because I haven’t noticed any glare or reflections when the screen is on.
The keyboard layout is different from typical keyboards. Similar to the Hexgears K950 keyboard I reviewed earlier, it has a unique layout with a number pad added to a tenkeyless size. It might feel unusual at first, but it’s definitely more convenient than not having a number pad.
The speakers were tuned in collaboration with AKG. I didn’t have high expectations since they are laptop speakers, but they are definitely better than those on other laptops.
Once you remove the laptop, you’ll find the accessories underneath.
These days, laptop chargers look much nicer compared to the old brick-style chargers.
For reference, it also supports PD (Power Delivery) charging.
This is an adapter for using standard USB devices, as the laptop itself only has USB-C ports.
This is an HDMI adapter.
These are extra pen tips.
This laptop has a touchscreen and comes with a stylus. The hinge rotates 360 degrees, allowing you to flip it over and use it like a tablet.
The bundled mouse.
It’s matte white, doesn’t seem to attract dirt easily, and looks nice.
Let’s take a look at the pouch that was discreetly tucked away in the box lid.
After unwrapping it, I found that the exterior is made of fabric material.
Adds a touch of elegance +++++++
The interior is made of a smooth material to prevent scratches on the laptop.
You can place the laptop inside just like this.
When you close the lid, it looks just like a regular pouch.
It does have some storage space.
You could put a mouse or charger in there,
but it’s not ideal.
The space seems more suited for carrying printed documents or cards.
Since the battery lasts for about half a day on a single charge, carrying just the laptop in the pouch for a short outing should be no problem at all.
According to the explanation, you can lay the pouch flat and use it as a mouse pad.
But where are you supposed to store the mouse? 😂
In terms of performance, it’s a Samsung product, so it might be a bit lacking compared to its price. However, having used high-performance gaming laptops, I can say that for a laptop to carry around campus, the most important factors are being lightweight, having long battery life, and being quiet.
While you could afford a high-spec gaming laptop, you wouldn’t want to use it during lectures due to the noisy fans. Samsung laptops might be expensive, but they look great, have solid internal design, and are easy to service, making them suitable for college use.
For reference, don’t buy a gaming laptop for college. 😂 Instead, get an affordable, lightweight laptop with decent performance and consider building a desktop for gaming. Gaming laptops are really not suitable for carrying around. 😅